MADISON, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson University-Florham men's basketball team was unable to recover after an early second half surge by King's College and eventually fell 72-60 on Wednesday night at the Ferguson Recreation Center in a MAC Freedom showdown.

The Devils (4-16, 2-7 MAC Freedom) were led by sophomore guard Steve Herdman, who poured in 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field. Alongside Herdman in the backcourt was freshman guard Anthony Mitchell, who also shot over 50 percent. Mitchell capitalized on his ability to get into the painted area and he finished the game with 13 points.  

Sophomore forward Alex Hanssen was a bright spot off of the Devils' bench as he had a career game, notching 12 points and eight boards. Hanssen helped spread the floor with his ability to knock down the long-range jumper and he buried three shots from beyond the arc.

Despite outshooting the Monarchs (9-11, 3-6 MAC Freedom), the Devils were plagued by fouls all night as King's College went to the line a total of 33 times in the contest.

King's College got off to a smooth start as they jumped out to an early 14-5 lead. John and Chris Fazzini linked up to score 12 of the Monarchs' first 14 points. The duo combined for 33 points for the game.

About a quarter of the way through the opening stanza, Hanssen checked into the game and he helped cut the deficit to seven after scoring six consecutive points for FDU-Florham.

With just over one minute remaining in the half, the Devils hit a groove and went on a 14-4 run, with Herdman tallying seven of those points.

The Monarchs came out of the locker room after the half with a five-point lead and they did not waste any time expanding it. Dan Rutecki, who scored a game-high 24 points on 10-of-13 shooting, teamed up with the Fazzini brothers and they helped the Monarchs go on an 18-2 run.

The Devils were quick to answer though, going on a 14-1 run to cut the deficit to 11, 54-43, with eight minutes left to play.

From that point on, the Monarchs worked diligently to get to the free throw line and they leaned heavily on their ability to knock down shots from the charity stripe.

There was a late charge from FDU-Florham with over three minutes remaining in the game once a Mitchell jumper was followed by back-to-back three-point makes from Derek Leohner and Hanssen. However, the Monarchs were able to ward off the attack and seal the 72-60 victory.

The Devils will be back in action on Saturday, February 6 to take on the Eastern University Eagles at 3 p.m.